<
https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2023/04/greenpeace-stands-against-slapps-and-wins>
"The U.S. litigation system is meant to resolve serious disputes.
Unfortunately, the high cost of litigation can be weaponized as a means of
harassment and censorship. That’s become all too common, and the last few
decades have seen the rise of what’s known as a Strategic Lawsuit Against
Public Participation, or SLAPP.
At EFF, as more speech of all types has moved online, we’ve seen SLAPPs
proliferate over digital speech. SLAPPs get filed against protesters who oppose
oil pipelines, and regular people doing everyday things like sending emails to
local officials, or even posting an online review.
Five years ago, together with Greenpeace and other environmental nonprofits,
EFF helped create the Protect the Protest coalition, or PTP. It’s a group of
nonprofits that supports its members and others in their fights against SLAPP
lawsuits.
One of the lawsuits that spurred the formation of PTP was
Resolute Forestry
Products v. Greenpeace. In this case, a logging company claimed that
Greenpeace’s advocacy for Canadian forests amounted to a “global fraud” that
should be punished under civil RICO laws—U.S. federal laws that were originally
intended to go after organized crime.
Following a summary judgment hearing last week, the
Resolute v. Greenpeace
case has finally been put to rest, with a complete victory for Greenpeace. This
baseless lawsuit, which lasted seven years, should never have been brought in
the first place. We hope Greenpeace’s victory against Resolute sends a strong
message to corporate SLAPP plaintiffs—you won’t win, and your targets won’t
stay silent."
Via Rixty Dixet.
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
